After Midnight
by Gender Outlaw
Summary: Tyler catches a glimpse of someone on Luke's webcam, and can't help wondering if it's Delirious.
1. Chapter 1

**.**

It's well after midnight, and the light of pre-morning is cutting through the shadows. It stripes through Tyler's too-thin curtains and wakes him mid-snore, the keyboard sticking to his cheek as he blinks bleary eyes and sits up, trying to focus.

The video is still rendering on his screen, it's only forty percent and he can just vaguely remember it starting at around one am.

He reaches for the mouse, everyone logged off of Skype hours ago, but he's not ready for bed, not yet, not even now sore and only half-awake. But there's a minimized tab at the corner of his screen and he clicks on it.

And it's from Luke's web cam.

There's no one in front of it, Luke wasn't stupid enough to fall asleep in front of his computer. And Tyler is mid-motion of closing the tab when the cursor stops, there's someone in Luke's kitchen, and it _isn't Luke_.

A lanky man, with dark hair - that's the closest feature he can make out with the kitchen lights off. It's dark in North Carolina too, and Wildcat squints into the glaring light of his computer, the white background other pages makes seeing all that much worse.

There's tattoos, spiraling up the man's back and hip and sides, no shirt but wearing loose pants. A soft light from outside, street lamps probably, illuminates the counter just before the fridge.

The man walks slightly hunched over, holding a hand to his head and mumbling something that Tyler can't hear. He pulls out the milk and drinks it straight from the carton.

It's still too dark to see in Luke's house, and too bright in Tyler's.

But he sees the man stop drinking, lower the milk and sway a little. He opens the cupboard above the counter, he pulls down a glass out of it, and puts the carton in.

He leaves the cupboard door open as he turns, with his empty glass, still rubbing his head, the light from the open fridge highlighting him as he walks out of the room.

Tyler can just make out the edges of what must be a couch in the next room, shifting back and forth in the next few seconds that it would take for someone to amble over to and fall into.

It's still dark in North Carolina, and it's dark in Indiana.

But Tyler is still squinting at his computer, his nose pressed to the screen, waiting.

.

And it's two days later when they're all in chat again, almost two in the morning, having played for hours.

" _I'm_ fucking _tired,"_ Luke whines when Wildcat starts another round of Prophunt, Brock and Vanoss agreeing. Nogla kicks his desk and whines.

But Tyler doesn't say anything. And they play one more time. Once more before morning.

And this time he's awake when Luke forgets to turn off his webcam, the computer monitor falling into power-saver mode and shutting off, the tiny red recording light of the webcam blocked by a cup of coffee on a cluttered desk.

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	2. Chapter 2

.

Delirious is drunk off his socks when Luke shoves his shoulder and wakes him up (one already hanging halfway off his foot) or rather tries to. Delirious blinks at him, but obviously isn't seeing with his eyes right now as a slight haze shifts across them.

"Look, I'm about go on Skype with the guys Jon, and I know you're still fucking drunk but I need to you to stay in this room, ok?" Luke frowns at him and feels his forehead. Too warm.

"Man you're going to kill yourself doing this sort of shit every year." He stands up and scratches at his beard, sighing as Delirious just closes his eyes and goes back to sleep.

"Fuck it. I'll lock the door so you don't go wandering off who the fuck knows where and break your neck or some shit. Okay?" Luke waits for a response that doesn't come, shakes his head, and tucks his friend in.

.

It's three thirty when Luke exits the game, barely remembering to say goodbye to his friends before he half-strangles himself with his headphone cord trying to get up.

The monitor will shut off on it's own in a half hour so he doesn't bother with it, stumbling down the hallway to his bedroom. Almost forgetting to unlock the door to the guest room.

He slumps against the wood as he works the simple push lock and calls out, "I'm opening it up Jon, so if you're awake and have to piss or something now's a good time to come out."

On second thought.."..Or, if you've _already_ pissed yourself in there, please don't. Just stay there until morning, okay?" Luke presses his ear to the door but all that he can hear from the other side is light snoring.

.

When Delirious wakes up, his head is killing him.

He sits up and cradles it in his hands, grumbling. The room is dark and the house is quiet.

His throat feels dry and his stomach lurches as he reaches for the bedside lamp, but the light hurts his eyes. So he tries to turn it off but reaches too far too fast and can hear it fall behind the nightstand and short out.

He rubs his face. Milk. Yeah, that'll settle his stomach.

.

The second time he is awake he is lying face first on Luke's couch with his feet sticking way over the edge and Luke himself standing in the kitchen yelling, holding a spoiled carton of milk.

The late afternoon sun getting is ready to set, and bathes the room in a sharp yellow glow.

 _"Delirious!_ " Luke is still talking but Delirious isn't listening. His stomach has too much more to say, so he starts to move, manages to slide his legs off the arms of the couch and back under him where they belong.

It's as he's sitting up that it comes out. His mouth opens and vomit and milk cover him, the couch, the floor.

He throws up again before Luke comes back, pressing a cold wash cloth to his face that does the trick. A faint scent of lemons has him closing his eyes in relief.

"I don't know what I'm going to do with you." Luke mutters as he wipes his friend's face clean.

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	3. Chapter 3

.

It's not like they never talk.

They literally spend most of their waking hours laughing, screaming, and crying at each through their computers. (And Delirious isn't sure which he likes better; the games themselves that get played, or the sound of his friends' voices. It's even better when he has a face to put to the names, the grimacing expression of an early death. Unexpected laughter when Nogla's character glitches out of the map shooting to the heavens like a rocket and Mini Ladd shoots soda out of his nose laughing and screaming as he holds his nose, complaining about how much it burns.)

But it's not enough. (There's something missing.)

Tyler is as Tyler does, and Delirious just can't put into words what feels off. It's more of a gut instinct than anything really. The man still laughs at his jokes, still makes fun of him when he messes up. Still does all the things he's always done.

But. There was the soft sound of someone biting their words off mid-sentence when he sat down, pulling his chair forward and yelling his greeting to the chat.

The barest of pauses, he feels awkward enough of as it is, he always feels awkward around other people, before his headphones are exploding and he's grinning wide.

.

It's only four hours into the session, and they've already switched games twice.

Tyler doesn't know what he wants to say, doesn't even know where to start. But there's something sitting at the back of his tongue and he has to keep swallowing it down.

When he first connected, he immediately dialed Evan saying, _"I saw something you wouldn't believe"_ without knowing that Brian was already in the chat, laughing.

Cracking first thing at him, "We don't want to know what you see when you go to the bathroom, that's the kind of thing trained medical professionals are for."

Evan's hysterical giggle covering his half-hearted _"Fuck you."_

"But seriously, what did you see?" Brian is bitting his lip and grinning on his webcam, Tyler can see the next joke just fine behind the teeth and laughs.

 _"Your momma, sucking this DICK!"_

Everyone laughs at the joke. And that's that. And they move on.

Despite Evan subtly texting him as the rest of the crew begins connecting, asking **"What happened?"**

He doesn't even hesitate as he sends back, **"Nothing. Just a stupid dream I had."**

After all, who's to say it wasn't? It was late and he was tired. The monitor was too bright and the webcam too dark. It could have been anyone in Luke's house. He could have dreamed the whole thing.

Who knows?

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	4. Chapter 4

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It's a number he hasn't used before, but still it's in his phone.

And he just hadn't had cause for it before, but after mulling to himself all day, debating yes and no, pros and cons, the sound of Delirious' voice (which shouldn't be a factor but somehow it _is_ ), Tyler finally hits the "dial" button and waits.

Then hangs up.

His thumb slides across the screen, and he switches to messaging.

Types, **"Are you at Cartoonz's place?"** then deletes it.

Sends out instead, **"Where are you staying?"**

Five minutes pass, where Tyler tries not to fidget, he's not nervous at all of course. Despite the fact his fingers keep pulling and re-pulling up the messaging app.

Tries to waste time on Twitter, until he receives, **"Who is this?"**

 **"Tyler, dumbass."** He replies. **"Don't you have me in your contacts?"**

Another pause.

He glares at the phone and starts typing something else out, when with a buzz the next message cuts him off.

 **"Of course I do. :P I was just checking. I'm in NC remember?"**

Tyler throws his phone across the room.

Then, swearing, gets up to retrieve it. He arched it somewhere into the kitchen, and saw it bounce behind the couch, but for fuck's sake now he can't find the damn thing.

Two more buzzes sound out in quick succession somewhere to his right as Tyler is bent under the couch.

"Goddammit," he mutters.

He's on his hands and knees, moving across the floor when he hears a final buzz from in front of the kitchen, and manages to catch the reflection of the phone's blue notification light flash somewhere under the counter.

He has to lay partway on his side, still swearing under his breath, to reach the damned thing where it slid through the dust and cobwebs.

Sitting on his heels, he blows the dust off his phone and unlocks the screen.

Waiting for him are more texts.

 **"Why do you want to know?"  
"Are you trying to plan a meetup? I'm not ready for that Tyler."  
"Where are YOU at?  
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to offend you. I know you're just messing with me."  
"I'm sorry."  
"I've got to go now, Luke just came back with pizza."**

Tyler sighs, and reads through the messages again.

He gets comfortable on the floor, stretching out his legs as he slowly types his reply. Backspaces a few times. And types again before finally sending.

 **"I'm not mad, moron. I was just worried Are you at Cartoonz place then? I was just wondering why we hadn't heard from you much lately. You're not sick again are you?"**

He sits there, on the floor in his kitchen, for almost an hour waiting.

Tyler would like to pretend that he wasn't just staring at the open messaging app, waiting for that new notification, but that would be a lie.

He hunches over, rests his elbows on his knees, and goes back to twitter. His thumb scrolling up and down, back and forth between apps. He pulls up YouTube and starts watching a video, stretches-

A sharp pain in his side reminds him that he's been sitting on the floor like a dumbass.

He gets up, and walks to the couch, hand on his side, twisting his back into place with a 'pop' felt more than heard.

 **"I'm fine."**

The messaging app is still open, phone still in Tyler's hand as he continues reading.

 **"Okay, maybe a little sick, but I'll be much better soon. :) Glad you aren't mad at me."**

And Tyler is just beginning to type back when the message comes through.

 **"Cartoonz is letting me at his house for right now."**

And in that instant, all the air and breath in his lungs is gone, and he falls backwards onto his couch, heavy, mouth silently forming words his brain doesn't want to accept.

 **"*stay at his house."**

Delirious, at Cartoonz's house. Delirious..

On his monitor screen, at ass-fuck in the morning. Walking across Cartoonz's kitchen. Highlighted by the bright light of the fridge. A silhouette of loose sweatpants and nice physique.

 **"He was worried. :P Cartoonz is a mother hen. (Don't tell him I said that.)"**

Dark hair moving through the nighttime shadows. Lanky body. Tattoos spiraling up a smooth back. Across _Delirious'_ arms.

Delirious.

 _It was him._

Fuck.

Tyler stares at the phone in his hands, blinking. His mouth moves, but he doesn't know what to say.

.


End file.
